The Beebe Medical Foundation announced that it had received its second-largest philanthropic gift in Beebe Healthcare’s 108-year history from bank owner Rocco and Mary Abessinio and their family.
Beebe Healthcare will name its Rehoboth Health Campus as the “Abessinio Health Campus.” The campus is located on John J. Williams Highway and Warrington Road between Lewes and Rehoboth Beach.
“Our family is very proud to make this gift to Beebe Healthcare, and we believe that all families and communities deserve better access and excellence in healthcare that Beebe provides,” said Rocco Abessinio. “It is an honor for our family to support the expansion of this community-focused healthcare system in Sussex County.”
The Abessinio Health Campus features the Specialty Surgical Hospital, Tunnell Cancer Center, Medical Arts Building, Center for Breast Health, and Beebe Outpatient Surgery Center.
“Since 1916, Beebe Healthcare has been able to meet the needs of Sussex County,” said Thomas J. Protack, president of the Beebe Medical Foundation. “That commitment and journey has required vision and generosity.”
Beebe Hospital was founded with a philanthropic gift of $100,000 from Helen and Benjamin Shaw to Drs. James and Richard Beebe to build the first hospital on the Margaret H. Rollins Lewes Campus in Lewes. Expansion at the Lewes Campus is limited, leading Beebe to expand to other locations in coastal Sussex County.
Current research predicts that the population growth in Sussex County will more than double the national average by 2027.
“With our region’s anticipated growth comes an expected increase in patients that will need more access to healthcare,” said David A. Tam, CEO of Beebe Healthcare. “Sussex County is and remains our specialty. This very generous gift from the Rocco A. and Mary Abessinio Foundation will help us advance patient care even more as we grow for the future. I am very thankful to Rocco and Mary and their family for this transformational gift.”
The largest gift to Beebe was a $10 million commitment from the Rollins family. The family’s nationwide business holdings got their start in Sussex County.
The Rocco A. and Mary Abessinio Foundation Inc. was established in 2001. The foundation has funded scholarships, capital campaigns, and social programs, principally in education, religious, and health initiatives for local communities and throughout the nation, according to a release.
Rocco, the son of Italian immigrants, began his career in banking and held multiple management positions before starting his own companies, namely Applied Card Systems Inc. and Applied Bank (formerly Cross Country Bank). Rocco’s companies became a top 10 issuer of Visa and MasterCard credit cards nationwide.
Applied Bank offers consumer and commercial products from branches located in Wilmington and Rehoboth Beach. Outside of banking, Rocco’s business success continued in several international food product businesses, commercial and residential real estate, and private equity investing.
A native of Wilmington, Rocco graduated from Salesianum High School and attended the University of Delaware. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business from Neumann University. Rocco and Mary currently reside in Boca Raton, FL. They spend their summers in Rehoboth Beach with their four children, their spouses, and 12 grandchildren.
